The Bible Another explanation is rooted in the New Testament. XI No.1 Spring 1994 by Stan Garczynski. The main event on the night of engagement was the tying together of the hands of the couple to be married. he has come! St. Nicholas entered, filling the room with not only his presence, but with his smile, the twinkle in his eye and his teasing booming voice. All told, while laws and aspects of the culture present very real obstacles for Polish Pagans, the small community does enjoy the freedom to practice and continues to eagerly expand despite the very large shadow of the countrys dominant religion. He was dressed in a long white robe, wearing a tall head piece much like a bishops mitre, a long white flowing beard, and in his hand he held the shepherds staff. An odd number foretold that someone would not live to the next Christmas Eve supper. My grandfather was a koldun or village healer in his native land and continued the practice when he came to the US in 1912. Easter in Poland | Polish Easter Traditions & Foods - In Your Pocket Polish only know one way to make and eat their sandwiches and that is open. To clarify one of the statements in the article: The number of roughly 4,500 adherents was based on a census methodology that didnt ask every respondent the question, so its an extrapolation from a smaller number of people answering the question. DYNGUS DAY - April 10, 2023 - National Today He was attracted to it because of hisextensive historical knowledge of the Slavs. The second day of the Christmas season (December 26) was St. Stephans Day, the traditional day of visiting and wishing everyone the joy of the holiday season, a direct contrast to Christmas Day. Siliniez - A wood god from Poland who moss was sacred; his altar fire was kept burning only with moss. Photo Gallery and Description of Poland Culture Page 1 - TripSavvy Cyrillic Script: What Is It & Who Uses It? for fair and mild spring. It does not mean that there is no possibility of conducting ones life according to the rules taken from the other faiths (unless theyre contradictory to Rodzimowierstwo), fascination by the other culture or having friends, family or know the people who have the other dominant faith.. Drawning Marzanna in the village Jeziorzany in 2014 [Photo Credit: Jacek wierczyski]. These celebrations, often extended to the following night - 23rd/24th of June, when they were called the Kupala Night or Sobtka instead, were common among all Slavic and Baltic nations, or even further in Europe, but their popularity decreased with the arrival of Christianity, which successfully introduced a substitute holiday - St Johns Eve. On Good Friday, in some houses mirrors are covered with black cloth and parents wake their children with twigs, whispering the words of a Lent prayer The wounds of God. He won and released the captives. POLAND This European Union member state is a bastion of Roman Catholicism, with as many as 37 million adherents (87.5% of the total population) today. If staying dry is your preferred state of self, dont visit Poland on Wet Monday. The citys name was, of course, Warsaw. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. Slavic Rodzimowiercy groups registered with the Polish authorities in 1995 are the Native Polish Church (Rodzimy Koci Polski), which represents a pagan tradition which goes back to pre-Christian faiths and continues Wadysaw Koodziej's 1921 Holy Circle of Worshipper of wiatowid (wite Koo Czcicieli wiatowida), and the Polish . Tradition dictates that this be a meatless dinner, that there should be an uneven number of dishes served. The practice is symbolic for sending the winter away and preparing nature for spring and its rebirth. These short moments of joy in the difficult life of peasantry follow many traditional customs before young couple exchange the wedding rings. In Poland, no-one would dream of wishing their friend a good year on their birthday. The Legend of the Dragon of Krakow (Wawel Dragon), 4. t.src = 'https://' + cdn + '/media/js/common/plugin_goconnect_embed.js'; At the conclusion of the prayer, the most important ceremony of the night, sharing of the Oplatek, and the exchange of wishes began. The farm people bring to church great bouquets of herbs, vegetables, and corn, interwoven with a few flowers from the fields and gardens, which are blessed by the priest. The chosen girl went to church in great pomp and ceremony, wearing the wreath on her head while sitting in a wagon pulled by four horses decorated in greenery and surrounded by other young maidens wearing flowers in their hair. Gniazdo is a magazine created by the Rodzimowiercy, but there are other publications that, according to Rogalinksi, mix traditional and New Age beliefs without providing any context. Whatever the number, its small, and that carries with it certain limitations. The younger brother was killed by the older one, Lech, who lied that dragons devoured his brother. Suddenly, a fairy came up to him and told him to go to the forest and find the flower of the fern which blossomed only on that night. Polish mythology is mainly associated with distinctive and vivid demonology full of monstrous creatures, witches, evil spirits, and werewolves. However, if a man believed their stories and was seduced by them, his life would soon tragically come to an end. The Legend of the Dragon of Krakow tells us the story of one of the historically most significant cities and once the capital of Poland.if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[320,50],'meettheslavs_com-box-4','ezslot_4',113,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-meettheslavs_com-box-4-0');if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[320,50],'meettheslavs_com-box-4','ezslot_5',113,'0','1'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-meettheslavs_com-box-4-0_1'); .box-4-multi-113{border:none !important;display:block !important;float:none !important;line-height:0px;margin-bottom:10px !important;margin-left:auto !important;margin-right:auto !important;margin-top:10px !important;max-width:100% !important;min-height:50px;padding:0;text-align:center !important;}. The first recorded Polish writing on Dyngus dates back to the Middle Ages. The Wild Hunt is not responsible for links to external content. Tomasz Rogalinski calls Rodzimowiercy to ritual. One day, she decided to swim into the Vistula river from the Baltic Sea and as she was swimming upstream, she reached the area where Warsaw is today. When their buds open in a few days, this is regarded as a good omen Classics feature honey, nuts, beans, barley and beetroot, fruit, fungi and fish (fried herring or carp, or even stuffed pikeperch). These smaller sandwiches, called tartinki, are quite possibly responsible for transforming parties in Poland from seated affairs into standing ones. Behind this wondrous bird that spread its wings, appeared the red- golden sun and Lech thought that this is a sign to stay at this place which he named Gniezno. In customs that can be documented back to the sixteenth century, the young couple was most often greeted at the entrance of the house with bread and salt. At this place, she met the Mazovian Prince who was wandering around. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. ins.style.width = '100%'; Slavic mythology has different versions of this story and some of them describe the Rusalkas as spirits of dead brides who died of unfortunate events or young womens souls who suffered a violent death, so now they revenge on men that they encounter near the lake where they live. ins.style.height = container.attributes.ezah.value + 'px'; The girl wearing the wreath approached, removed it from her head, and either handed it over to the owner or placed it on his head. Furthermore, roughly 4,500 is the total for the category of Pagans, Neo-Pagans, and Rodzimowiercy, The author is correct that the census option did not separately name any other paths (Wicca, Druidry, Asatru, etc), but they were theoretically included in that number, even though they are probably quite a small percent of the total when compared with Rodzimowiercy. It is a Polish tradition to offer the birthday boy or girl 100 years of good wishes, good health and long life. var ins = document.createElement('ins'); Whether he should pursue his opponents through the dark woods and steep mountains where they had gone or to return back and admit that he was defeated in great shame in front of his people. This day was spent in comparative quiet surroundings within the intimate family group. Wedding traditions demanded that guests be invited in a certain obligatory manner. The humble open sandwich was created as far back as medieval times. The Easter meal includes traditional Polish dishes including urek, biaa kiebasy, boiled eggs, and an assortment of other foods and desserts. The Obra Water Monster is a creature related to a folk tale similar to the one of the famous Loch Ness monster from Scotland. . Like in many other European countries, the arrival of summer is celebrated on St. John's Eve in Poland. The girls knock on the windows and sing songs in praise of their spruce tree. He gathers his mighty knights and takes off on a quest. Another belief was that whichever one of the bridesmaids touched the bride or her wreath first after the marriage would marry that year. 2. However, the devil was even more than Sir Twardowski so, one day, he tricked him and made him visit an inn that was named Rome. Everyone sang the bridesmaids, the groomsman, the musicians and the wagon driver. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. t.type = 'text/javascript'; Polish law does not provide it. Moreover, Wet Monday celebrates the arrival of spring and the future of a relationship. Lacking reliable resources for many Pagan paths on paper or online, the alternative seeking a teacher in person can also be difficult, due to the low density of Pagans overall. In areas like the mountainous regions where the priest was not able to travel, people brought chalk to church on this day to be blessed. Jacke became thin as a twig out of sorrow and suffered all the time, learning that no happiness is possible without sharing. This was done with one glass which traveled from hand to hand. All Saints Day, November 1st, traditionally has been associated in Polish legend with ghosts and wayward souls. Going back to the earliest, notable stages of history, we may conclude that many phenomena were hard to be comprehended and one of the ways to tackle this was to create a belief system that will put the existence of supernatural powers and creatures forward. On Fat Thursday, people line up outside of bakeries to get enough freshly prepared donuts for the day. An important part of the funeral ceremony were the feasts, called strawa in the old Polish tradition, and from the 16th century on, the Latin stypa. Family picnic on St Johns Day, fireworks display and concerts. One of the traditional dishes was Kutia, which was served in both the homes of the nobility and the serfs. Walenty was a dedicated miner who was completely in love and obsessed with his work, so he made a plea to God to let him stay in the mines after he dies. The Poles called it the Shepherd Mass, because the shepherds were first to greet the new born Christ. lo.observe(document.getElementById(slotId + '-asloaded'), { attributes: true });var cid = '6354310426'; In Polish tradition, the bread and salt at the reception are ritual food. Swieconka (Easter Blessing of Food) The vigil lasted until the burial in order to protect the dead soul from evil spirits. In Polish villages, people would scare youngsters with the story about Latawiec that would seduce and get them if they werent careful enough and finally eat them alive. Reportedly, in the early history of Poland, the banks of the river Vistula were lined with tiny wooden huts where farmers lived. When the graves are decorated and countless flickering frame cast their haunting shadows amid the dusk, the mood is set for an outdoor service and prayers for departed souls. Quite often forgotten and preserved only in some rural areas, the celebrations surface now in the 21st century as another idea for a fun summer activity. From very early on, everyone was careful of conduct and observed everything that occurred in the house, garden and heavens. It was so essential and played such a vital roll in wedding activities that where other customs have disappeared altogether, the Oczepiny has survived to this day. However, each country has its own version of this mythology and all its features, therefore, it is worth mentioning that events and changes in history have contributed with alterations to mythical stories, legends, and tales so every mythology is unique even when it comes from a common source of cultural and social influences.var cid = '6354310426'; Pisanki (Polish Easter Eggs) Starting on Palm Sunday, the girls will begin gathering eggs, which will become pisanki. The spirit of Dyngus is described in this lively description from the Poznan region during 1800s: Barely had the day dawned on Easter Monday when I woke the boys and gathered some water to start throwing it on the girls. The Legend of Janosik, the Polish Robin Hood, 8. With the help of several Polish Pagans, we examinethe diversity of Pagan practice found withinthe country. It is said that if Poland ever needs them again, they will rise and serve their beloved country and nation. They just needed something to be at the same time of the year, because of the fact that Pagan festivals and traditions were preserved even despite the Christianisation. And many customs take from Polish pagan traditions. In Slavic legend, a sacred oak tree was the home of all beings; the top branches were the heavens, the trunk and lower branches the realms of men, and the roots were the underworld. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". While part of the Polish custom bonfires, singing and dancing resembles other celebrations all over the world, the traditional wild flower crowns and fortune-telling rituals date back to Slavic paganism. Due to the tradition of eating fatty or sweet foods before the start of Lent, which calls for fasting, Poles have adopted the custom of eating paczki, or Polish donuts. Sometimes the owner removed the wreath from the girl himself and placed it aside. Top 10 Polish Wedding Traditions - Meet the Slavs ins.className = 'adsbygoogle ezasloaded'; Another issue with the small number of Pagans is that they tend to know each other, like residents of a small town, which is fine, until it isnt. According to Rogalinski, Rodzimowierstwo has three of these formally organized groups. The people decorate the graves with chrysanthemums, asters, and autumn flowers ~ and place candles and votive lights. container.style.maxWidth = container.style.minWidth + 'px'; Latawiec was a personification of demons and evil creatures that were associated with sins and sinful thoughts and deeds.if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[320,50],'meettheslavs_com-medrectangle-4','ezslot_2',112,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-meettheslavs_com-medrectangle-4-0');if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[320,50],'meettheslavs_com-medrectangle-4','ezslot_3',112,'0','1'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-meettheslavs_com-medrectangle-4-0_1'); .medrectangle-4-multi-112{border:none !important;display:block !important;float:none !important;line-height:0px;margin-bottom:10px !important;margin-left:auto !important;margin-right:auto !important;margin-top:10px !important;max-width:100% !important;min-height:50px;padding:0;text-align:center !important;}.